Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has expressed concern over the recent struggles of Rohit Sharma, following his lack of runs in the first two matches of the ongoing Indian Premier League. Rohit has endured a horrible start to the IPL, scoring only eight runs in last two matches. In Mumbai’s match against Chennai Super Kings, he was dismissed for a four-ball duck. While, against Gujarat Titans he scored 8 runs. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma headed into the IPL after playing a vital role in India's win at the Champions Trophy. However, he hasn’t been able to replicate that form in the IPL so far.
"Rohit Sharma is clearly going through a phase. He's not the Rohit Sharma of, say, three to four years ago. He's at a stage in his career where he has to push himself every morning - train hard and be at his best - because things are slipping away for him. He's still relying on his natural talent and instincts,” Manjrekar said on JioStar.
Manjrekar also cast doubts over MI’s batting line-up, highlighting South African batter Ryan Rickelton’s struggle.
"Ryan Rickelton, being a South African, will take time to adjust to Indian pitches. Very few South African batters, barring AB de Villiers and Heinrich Klaasen, have truly flourished on Indian pitches. So we'll have to give him time. Apart from that, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav, along with Robin Minz and some of the other players, form the batting line-up. However, to me, it still looks a little unconvincing."